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The ODM National Elections

The announcement last Week by the National Governing Council of the ODM that the National Delegates Coogress of the Party be held in February 2014 has elicited rivalry and jostling for Positions among politicians in the party.

Already a number of politicians both in Parliament and outside Parliament have started expressing interest in some of the top positions in the National office.

Kisumu Central MP Ken Obura has been traversing parts of Nyanza telling people that he is interested in the Secretary General’s seat which is held by Prof Anyang’ Nyongo the Kisumu Senator.

However politicians from Kisii region are keen to have the seat of National Treasurer which has been held by Mr. Dalmas Otieno in an Acting Position.

Mr. Otieno has been acting since the resignation from the party of Mr. Omingo Magara three years ago.

Politicians from Gusii region are keen on retaining the seat in the region. Bomachoge Chache MP Mr. Simeon Ogari is one of those interested in the position.

Ogari says the seat belongs to the region and that ODM Delegates should Consider giving it to the region.

He says he is interested in the seat because he wants to revitalize the Party and help in fundraising activities.

Another MP from the region who is interested in the seat is Kitutu Masaba’s Mr. Timothy Bosire.

36 comments on “The ODM National Elections”

When the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) set February 28 as the date for its National Delegates Convention (NDC, the stage was set for the country’s biggest political party to hold the convention where new national officials would be elected.

As a build up to this big event, over 90 members of the party applied for the 27 seats in the national executive committee (NEC) to spearhead the party activities for the five years and prepare it for the next general election.

After vetting by the National Elections Board of the party, 82 aspirants were cleared and given the chance to seek the support of the delegates ahead of the NDC.
Last Friday (28th Feb. 2014) it was all systems go and the party was ready for a successful exercise.

The National Police Service deployed several lorry loads of police officers drawn from the General Service Unit (GSU), Regular Police and Administration Police. The officers were in full combat gear an indication that they were upto the task and ready to do what they do best, ‘maintain law and order’.
The ODM expresses concern at the casual manner with which the officers carried themselves when the so called ‘men in black’ disrupted the would have been a peaceful voting exercise.

The ODM would the Inspector General of Police to respond to the following concerns;

1. How did the so called ‘men in black’ gain access into the venue of the NDC when the officers had cordoned off all the entry and exit points?

2. Why did the armed police officers sleep on their job and let the ‘men in black’ over run them?

3. Was the National Police Service part of the conspiracy to have the ODM elections disrupted to give the party a bad image?

4. When the incident happened, the law reinforcement officers were right inside the venue, why didn’t they arrest the men and charge them?

The ODM wishes to have these concerns responded to as part of investigations the party has launched to ascertain the cause of the violence that led to the abortion of the exercise.

We urge our members and supporters to maintain calm as the relevant Task Force gets to the root cause of the incident.

A correction to what I wrote above, someone just sent me a longer video of the event and well after the chaos I can see police milling around but it is not clear who they should arrest at that point.

Now, for sure my final word on this. One, I think the focus on the police is mistaken. Tensions were palpable before the day, and it is not surprising that this happened. Two, arresting the hooligans will not deal with what appears to be a deep rift in the party. What ODM leadership should do is send strong signals that it is dealing with that. Third, what people saw was the chaos centred around well known ODM people (one of them Mwaura, I think). It’s going to be very hard to accept fingers pointed elsewhere. Fourth, there are evidently two factions with major support. Painting one as having been bought buy Jubilee to infiltrate ODM is a sure way to alienate people and split the party. I would urge the ODM secretariat to take a break from what it wants to put out and try to see how things look to outside eyes. On the current path, self-destruction is what one can think of.

According to the Peoples Newspaper – Midiwo wants Raila to get rid of Oburu. My question is if this is a family fued good too far as Outa claims. Read on.
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Gem MP and close ally of ODM leader Raila Odinga has stirred fresh controversy in the party’s top ranks by calling on the former Prime Minister to shun key allies from his inner circle of advisers, including his brother nominated MP Oburu Oginga. Days after Raila struck a truce between rival ODM leaders following aborted chaotic elections, Midiwo is now calling for stern action against three Nyanza MPs whom he claims are misleading the party leader.

Speaking to The People by phone, Midiwo singled out Homa Bay Senator Otieno Kajwang’, Dr Oginga and Nyando MP Fred Outa as being behind wrong decisions that have pushed ODM to the brink of collapse. An angry Midiwo, who is the Cord Deputy Minority Whip claimed the trio were using their close links with Raila to influence making of some decisions that threaten the very unity of ODM.

“The likes of Kajwang’, Outa and Oburu have been misleading Raila on a number of occasions and it’s time they are told plainly that they have no credibility to advise Raila,” said Midiwo, himself an ally and maternal cousin of Raila’s. Midiwo who, with Siaya Senator James Orengo, did not attend last Friday’s National Delegates Convection (NDC) at Moi International sports Centre has been complaining that a section of ODM MPs were misadvising Raila politically.

But in a quick rejoinder, Outa told off Midiwo claiming, “he has found new love in Jubilee and is being funded to finish Raila politically.” Outa accused the Gem law-maker of taking family differences between him and Oburu too far by publicly attacking the legislator. “If he has gone to Jubilee, let him go and dine with them, but Jakoyo must know that even if he has family issues with Oburu he needs to address them at the family level and avoid bringing domestic issues on the national front.” “He should stop dragging my name into this, I am not part of that family,” Said Outa, also on phone.

The Nyando MP stated that Midiwo should not purport to be “vetting” leaders who Raila should talk to, saying the former Prime Minister has enough experience to know friend and foe. Outa claimed Midiwo’s outbursts were just a confirmation of his fear of strong leaders from Nyanza surrounding the Cord leader. “That is his problem, he fears stronger people from Nyanza walking with Raila would outshine him.

He has great appetite for weak leaders whom he can manipulate,” claimed Outa. On misadvising Raila, Outa denied the allegations noting that the party leader consults widely and cannot be held hostage by any one or three leaders. “Midiwo cannot tell Raila who to talk to. No one, even himself, can advise Raila, our leader consults widely and you cannot define who Raila’s friends are,” Outa told Midiwo. Kajwang also scoffed at Midiwo’s claims, stating that those out to destroy ODM and Raila were well known and documented.

“They can run in circles, but they cannot hide. We know them and we shall not allow the party to be hijacked, even when they accuse us of misadvising the party leader,” said Kajwang. Midiwo also claimed the Kasarani chaotic elections were pre-planned days before the NDC meeting. He claimed Kajwang’ had vowed to him that the exercise would be messy if nominated Senator Agnes Zani’s team did not carry the day.

“The disruption and chaos were sponsored by us (ODM leaders), Kajwang’ told me personally that no matter what, if his team would not win there was going to be chaos. Being one of the members who were against the elections I stayed out and am not regretting it,” said Midiwo. But, according to Outa, giving the polls a wide berth was more a confirmation that some ODM MPs were working with external forces to kill the party and are not in ODM with both legs.

Some notable ODM leaders who skipped the Kasarani event included Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero, Orengo, MPs Ken Obura (Kisumu Central), Agostino Neto (Ndhiwa), Millie Odhiambo (Mbita) and Dalmas Otieno (Rongo). “If Kajwang’ told him so then why did he keep quiet? If you find your house about to burn, do you keep quiet or save the house?” posed Outa. Outa alternately blamed Budalang’i MP Ababu Namwamba’s camp for the Friday mess, saying the team circulated campaign paraphernalia in the voting hall against the rules guiding elections.

And Orengo on his part cautioned the former PM to be cautious with some people surrounding him, warning that they could be detrimental to his political career. “He should be asking himself questions, like why some of us who have been loyal and honest with him over the years, have suddenly changed our stand. They know the reasons why we did not attend the Kasarani meeting,” said Orengo.

Kenya: Details have emerged that the combative “Men in Black” at the aborted ODM elections last weekend were acting on instruction and executing a carefully crafted script. Investigations by The Standard on Sunday reveal that the top leadership of the party was not necessarily in the dark regarding the presence and role of the riotous young men at the polls. The “Men in Black” caused the ODM elections to be halted a few minutes after a handful of delegates had cast their votes. According to an ODM senior official from Nairobi and who is in the know about details of the preparations a few days before the event, there was an elaborate plan to disrupt the elections should it become clear that the Hassan Joho–Ababu Namwamba team was going to win. The masters of the “Men in Black” — including three senior ODM officials from Nairobi County — assembled an army of close to hundred youths from Nairobi’s Eastlands and Kibera under the stewardship of former Makadara MP Reuben Ndolo, former Nairobi Mayor George Aladwa and the party’s Nairobi Youth Leader Collins Ondiek.

According to our source who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, the idea of thwarting the Joho-Namwamba team was mooted immediately after party leader Raila Odinga met Nairobi delegates in Upper Hill on Wednesday, two days before the election date. “Immediately after the delegates meeting ended, a group of senior Nairobi party officials including Ndolo, Aladwa, Nairobi ODM youth leader Collins Ondiek and Kadundo who is charge of security at Orange House met at the same venue at 3pm to plan how to execute the scheme to stop the elections. Clear instructions “We agreed that a group of youths posing as party private security people be stationed inside the hall and blend with the delegates but take strategic positions from where they would easily swing into action should the need arise,” said the source. “The instructions were very clear; do not allow anything to continue after we give you the signal to act,” said the insider. In the scheme, which he said went on according to plan, a senior politician donated Sh200, 000 to procure the black jackets for the “security” people to ensure they looked distinct and easily convincing that they were indeed security personnel.

“Most of them have provided security during ODM functions previously and therefore it would be easy for the delegates and anyone else to trust them. And as anticipated, no one raised a finger when they got in and sat comfortably in the hall which was strictly reserved for bona fide delegates, the election board, observers and journalists,” said the ODM source. The black jackets were ordered on Wednesday and a female tailor, who is a relative of the senior Nairobi ODM official, promised that they would be ready the following day. “A total of 12 tailors started working on close to 40 black jackets while the youths were told to get black trousers to match with the coats. She did an amazing job and we picked the jackets the following day as promised,” he said. The following day, the “Men in Black” and their masters met at 3D Restaurant on Elgeyo Marakwet Road from 7 pm. Later in the night, the group relocated to Green House on Ngong Road where they briefly met one of the candidates running for the Secretary General position. About an hour later, the team accompanied the candidate to Ngong Hills Hotel on the same road. At about midnight, the group met Raila at the hotel. The party leader had come to the hotel from a meeting at Kempinski Hotel on Waiyaki Way, Westlands where he had met the Joho-Ababu team.

Raila, according to our source, took his dinner before he briefly met the group and asked them to “fuata vile wakubwa wenyu wanasema” (take instructions from your bosses). Both Aladwa and Ndolo denied that they were involved in the planning and said they were busy campaigning for the positions they were gunning for.“That is idle talk, I was not involved in any business of disrupting the elections and I am seeking legal advice on some of the people who associated me with the men in black,” Ndolo responded. Aladwa, who admitted to have attended the meetings, said that if he were involved in the planning it would have been worse than what went on at Kasarani and pointed an accusing finger at the election board. We are puzzled “The elections board should say what they know, because they must have been the ones who engaged the youths who are well known to the party to offer security. We heard them calling for security and the men in black came out,” said Aladwa. However, Nancy Abisai, a member of the elections board, said that at no time did the board engage any private security to oversee their NDC and subsequent polls. “The board wrote to the party secretariat requesting police officers to be deployed to the venue and as you may have seen there was heavy presence of security in the area. We are still puzzled over where the men in black came from. I remember asking them to move away from the ballots when the elections were about to start,” said Ms Abisai.

The said there was thorough vetting of the delegates as they entered the hall with all of them having to go through two gates where they had to identify themselves before they were allowed in. “We are waiting for the investigation committee to tell us how the Men in Black entered the venue. We are told the group could have entered the hall through the VIP gate,” said Abisai. Party’s own good Ondiek admitted that he had been involved in some of the meetings but insisted that they were for the good of the party and that they never planned to disrupt the elections. “As a youth leader from Nairobi, my interest was to see a peaceful election in the city and I was involved in planning to ensure that there was calm. I suspect some candidates could have infiltrated us and asked a few of our youths to disrupt,” said Ondiek. He said that out of the 100 youths they had engaged, only a few were captured on camera causing mayhem and they could have been paid by some of the candidates. Now Watch: KTN Weekend Prime full bulletin 08.03.2014 with Yvonne Okwara “Out of our 100 youths it is only about 10 who came out to disrupt the exercise. I hope the investigation will shed light on who could have bribed the small group to turn against the exercise which had gone on so well,” said Ondiek.

Jakoyo Midiwo is my MP. For the record, I must say that I have never liked his style of doing things for he has a character that leaves a lot to be desired. On the other hand, he is the only Gem MP to have been elected more than two terms even though. His character aside he has probably done better is terms of development than any other Gem MP. In that way he is appreciated.

As coarse as he might be, I think that he is spot on by saying that the chaos in ODM probably saved the party from a hostile takeover by some sponsored characters commonly known as projects. I don’t know if he was part of the disruption or not. But I have asked a number of Jubilee (TNA) adherents if the coalition sponsored some of the contestants. I’m told that its true one of the teams was sponsored with the sole purpose of commandeering the party come 2017. The sponsorship cash was coming from URP side of the coalition. They told me that the idea is to yank the party from rightful owners just the way Martin Shikuku did to Kenneth Matiba. Only that this time it was to be yanked from all its members and prevent it from participating in elections through orchestrated and unnecessary squabbles, infighting court injunctions and so on.

The amount of money that flew around during the campaigns was amazing as it was mind boggling. In my opinion, there would be no reason for spending over 100M to capture a party position if you don’t have an ulterior motive. Remember that all is not well between URP and TNA inspite of the show of unity. Each party is planning for 2017 as we speak. URP is seriously looking for a partner because TNA might not need it in the next elections apart from the fact that we don’t know how the ICC will change the equation, for one of the Jubilee partners is likely going to be jailed.

Then there is CORD which Jubilee is looking to split. I’m reliably told that Jubilee wants to create two centers of power in Western province to make its entrance into the region easier. These two centers do not include Mudavadi for they consider him weak and a lover of free things. The two centers would be played against each other and in this way an equal split would occur. While one center already exists and is firmly in CORD, the intention was to create another via splinter group in ODM. Western province has been targeted because the coast is considered too pro ODM to be manipulated, besides there are no natural fissures to work with. In western the Luhya sub-tribes seem to be an easier prey. The argument is that if you split the rural counties, you split Nairobi too. That’s the plan. That’s what is at stake.

While things have now settled, the top organs of the party need to seriously look at ways of conducting an election devoid of the fracas that we saw. In my humble opinion, the party must perhaps recruit new delegates or update the delegates list. The elections should not be held in a hurry. End of this year would be a good time.

2. Establish the mandate and enumerate the functions of the TIEC and the structures for the implementation of the said mandate and functions. The tenure of TIEC.

3. Establish the framework and mechanisms for enabling the TIEC to run the Party.

4. Receive and consider the report of the task force established to inquire into and to make recommendations on the circumstances surrounding and leading to the stalemate experienced during the National Delegates Convention held on the 28th February 2014.

5. Arising from the Report of the Task Force recommend appropriate measures for adoption and implementation which are and not limited to the following.
a) When do the campaigns begin and end and is it legitimate to campaign on the floor of the convention when the election exercise begins.
b) Preparation, confirmation and certification of registers.
c) Form of ballot papers
d) Systems, procedures and methods for voting and counting of votes and the final announcement of the results.
e) Security at the Convention during the voting exercise. Should it be outsourced?

6. The date and venue of the NDC for purposes of conducting fresh elections for the national office bearers and consideration of the following matters.
a) Debts and obligations arising from the NDC held on the 28th February 2014
b) Budget for the next elections and how to raise needed funds.
c) Preparatory work and planning to enable NEC, once in place, to organize for the next elections.
7. Membership recruitment and the expansion of the numerical strength of party supporters. Mobilization countrywide. To be discussed as a task to be undertaken by NEC.

8. Party activities and programmes for ODM as the main opposition party in the country developing policies and drawing strategic plans during the tenure of the TIEC.

9. The status and strengthening of CORD with an eye on 2017

10. The status of ODM and CORD in Parliament, county assemblies and the performance of CORD Governors in running county governments.

It has been agreed that H.E Hon Hassan Joho and H.E Hon Wycliffe Oparanya will jointly chair the committee while Hon Ababu Namwamba and Hon Dr Agnes Zani will be joint secretaries. The team shall be reporting to the Party Leader.
The Terms of Reference of this group is clearly spelt out in the attached document.
We have set up the team to investigate the disturbances that led to the disruption of the ODM elections in Kasarani on 28th February 2014.
They include:
Mr Jotham Nyukuri – Chairperson
Hon Harold Kipchumba;
Mr Isaiah Mandala
Mr Jotham Arwa
Mr Mtalaki Mwashimba

The NGC yesterday only happened after the Party Leader read the riot act to one of the factions, who had earlier in the morning unsuccessfully tried to overrun and take over the party headquarters. The Party Leader threatened to take decisive action unless the two factions sat down and each provided 3 names, to form an interim transitional committee – Chaired by the party leader himself – whose first mandate is to investigate the NDC fiasco, carry out a forensic audit on the party register/delegates list and then put in place formalities to conduct another free and fair NDC/national elections.

Contrary to common belief, the committee shall not oversee the elections. ODM has its own independent National Election Board Chaired by Judy Pareno. The NEB had planned a well organised secret ballot election. It had trained elections clerks (about 76 of them) and a returning officer and a deputy returning officer, supervised by the NEB. There were three copies of the delegates register at Kasarani, and the OCDP Kasarani was charged with security, and his men had a copy of this list at the main gate for verification of everyone coming into the hall. How an unauthorized group of about 500-800 (huge swing vote) made their way into the hall is something the OCPD may want to explain given he was in charge of two gates before delegates reached the hall. Additionally, someone imported vandals/goons, and made them dress in the same attire as the party security, and they proceeded to stop the election without the OCPD taking any action on them. He said that no one filed a complaint yet his mandate was to provide security. He did not make a single arrest.

The NDC function was proceeding quite well until a large group of people forced their way into the hall and declared themselves delegates ready to vote according to a pre-printed list. That in itself was a violation of the election by-laws. The most oiled faction in the party compromised the delegates list and had spies right up to the secretariat which is the custodian of the delegates list.

There is overwhelming evidence that one of the factions is working with another faction of the Jubilee faction (such evidence shall be published in this blog shortly). The same faction run a one week campaign blitz that cost no less than Sh100m; even our own presidential campaign never spent that kind of money per week. So obviously, there is infiltration by people who want to position their people in key positions in the ODM hierarchy.

Jubilee knows that it is only ODM that stands between its 20 year reign of plunder and dictatorship and are doing all in its power to make sure it has its people occupying key positions in ODM or at worst it splits into factions. I can assure you, that will not happen.

Phil, I thought I had stated my last word but one brief one. I will add this because I have great respect for Raila and I think people are doing him a disservice.

You say the OCPD should have made an arrest, but I did not see any policemen in the hall to make arrests. The other thing is whether it is a fact that nobody has filed official complaints. Why not, especially given claims that some of the goons well known. Third, the OCPD works for a government that is controlled by Jubilee. It seems poor planning to put total security reliance on them.

You also state that one of the factions is working with Jubilee. If that is so, then ODM’s problems are worse than people imagine. Naturally, Jubilee can be expected to work to undermine ODM. The question is what ODM is doing internally to counter that. If there is “overwhelming evidence”, then what is being done about it? Giving them positions on the interim team does not appear to be a very bright idea. That is especially ironic because you then state that “there is infiltration by people who want to position their people in key positions in the ODM hierarchy”.

If Jubilee can wreak such havoc as is claimed on ODM and buy ODM people, then people will question whether ODM has the internal strength for national leadership and what kind of people it has. As I see it, the focus for ODM is to look deep at itself. In fact, if it is true that one ODM faction has been bought, then it just highlights the problem of what kind of people are in such factions as ODM. That is a problem for ODM to solve. After the “overwhelming evidence” is published here, then what? Even before it is published here, has Raila seen it? If not, why not? If so, what has he done about it?

ODM party faithful should be careful about explanations that will ultimately show Raila and the party in a bad light. There should be some thinking through of claims that are being made about the fiasco.

I also want to clarify a comment in relation to you “contrary to common belief, the committee shall not oversee the elections”. On the face of it, that is done by the NEB. But do people really believe that the NEB will not accept input from the interim leadership? “Independent” should be believed only up to a point.

Heading into the Kenyan elections of March last year, I considered Raila the best candidate and ODM the best party for Kenya’s next leadership. Unfortunately both their strategies and tactics were poorly thought out and badly executed. I know people will blame vote stealing and the court judgment but a hard look at some things is long overdue.
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Going into these elections, ODM’s, the bungling has been hard to believe, especially when it comes to the issue of acclamation vs. secrete vote, creation of multiple positions, and so on.
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Strong supporters of ODM will soon be coming up with “explanations”. I think it is better to take a hard look at the reality. If ODM leadership remains incapable of that, they what we are seeing are the painful thrashings of a dying animal. That would be very bad because Kenya desperately needs alternative leadership right now.

ODM has a lot of things to sort out but on this, I wouldn’t rush to heap blame until the truth is known. I think there is more than meets the eye and i hope Nairobi branch has some convincing answers. Here is what I know:

1) Despite the back and forth and opinions that had been expressed earlier (what democracy is about) at the end of the day the party followed its constitution and voting was by secret ballot.

2) the delegates agreed on some amendments to the party constitution, including a proposal to increase posts. (Personally I didn’t think this was a wise move). Right or wrong, like it or not the majority won and everyone had to accept this.

3) some delegates walked out but were prevailed upon to return. everything seemed to be going on ‘well’ until mwaura and his group entered the scene.

What happened next can only be compared to scenes from a movie. i understand mwaura got enraged because his name was missing from the ‘winning’ team joho list that was doing the rounds among the delegates. was it the party’s fault that his ‘team’ excluded him from it’s campaign flier?

apparently the ‘guys in black’ (party security turned mwaura security) weren’t really there to provide security but to vandalize property and election material.

who sent them?

phil, as i wait for the inside scoop allow me to speculate as i “relax in my air-conditioned office in the diaspora. ” 🙂 looking forward to your input.

Akinyi, I do get and appreciate your points and the advice to caution. Before I make another point, let me say that what happens in ODM concerns anyone with an interest in Kenya, be they Kenyans or not, be they inside Kenya or not. ODM’s problems are therefore very worrying because they could leave Kenya in very bad hands for a very long time.
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Having said that, I don’t think I have to wait for any claimed explanations. I expect them to be about moles from elsewhere and people who have been paid to cause problems. That seems to have been established as a line to such an extent that even when it might be true, people will have doubts. I.e. the story of the boy who cried wolf. The image of what happened today has been very damaging and not just in Kenya or among Kenyans. Looking at a few responses, a particular concern is whether Raila has lost the grip that a leader should have.
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The main thing I meant to say is that I am not surprised one bit that this turned out to be a messy affair. The signs were all there, and from what I expected the outcome is even mild. As I see it from a casual observation, if ODM is to properly fight its external enemies, it must first prepare by making itself internally strong.
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I have noted your comment about security. I have no intention to be critical of anyone, but your explanation is a curious one. I would have expected very tight security, provided by a thoroughly vetted organization. Even without considering things such as those that happened, consider the provision of security when someone like Raila is around. From the videos I watched, the security was very bad.

Today, consultations between members of Sen. Agnes Zani and Budalangi MP Ababu Namwamba teams chaired by Party Leader Mr. Raila Odinga were held and resolved that a six member interim transitional team be formed to take charge of the party for three months. The resolve was later adopted by the ODM National Governing Council (NGC) converging at Orange House, Nairobi.
The two teams were directed by the NGC to file the names of their nominees to the interim team before the close of business today.
And as directed by the NGC, the teams presented their nominees as follows;
Team Namwamba;
1. Mr. Ababu Namwamba
2. Mr. Hassan Ali Joho
3. Mr. Adan Keynan

Phil,
At least the party has acted with some speed to redeem the situation. We are still at a loss as to who those so called men in black were and who brought them there to cause chaos. It seems to me that both sides realize they are playing with fire.

The real danger here is that now the contestants are to be the referees. That is always dangerous. Also it seems some people invested a lot of money to grab the party for better or for worse. That to me is the real problem ODM has to deal with me. ODM should have learned from the Maanzo fiasco when some people grabbed ODM K and kaboom, they were gone.

ODM needs honest party leaders to rejuvinate the party not mercenaries who want to use the party for future deals with anybody who has money. That core leadership of the party has to be diversified and committed.

As it is I do not have much confidence in either team. Ababu is a good guy and he has worked for the party but he comes across as if he is a youth winger for Joho. That inspires very little confidence. The other group are essentially strangers to ODM. I think ODM has to navigate this carefully and merge the two groups while also bringing in some achors for ODM.

It is unfortunate that at a time when there are so many issues to be addressed including the assault on the judiciary, ODM is too busy fighting petty wars to focus on what matters to Kenyans. People should contest on their own individual strenghth as party members and not just gang up with whoever can produce cash and helicopters

Phil, it appears that Raila is either incapable or unwilling to take some hard decisions that must be taken. That is too bad for the future of ODM and politics in Kenya. Yesterday I talked to some people there who have been very strong supporters of Raila and the party and other who are not. The damage that the fiasco has done seems to be enormous. This is important because ODM wishes to portray itself as a national party and therefore needs to reflect on how its internal politics are seen elsewhere. The way to deal with it should have been to act swiftly to arrest the damage. Instead, what is proposed seems to be just a way of postponing the inevitable, with the side-effect of the party’s leadership being seen as lacking in thought, strategy, will-power, and so forth. The other side cannot be disappointed with the slow-motion self-destruction.

John Dibbley,
I think that this is a good move of the part of ODM.
First, I dont think its Railas job to arrest people. The police was there it their work.
But even if Raila had to arrest these people, it would be foolhardy to hold another NDC next Friday or even the one after that. The issues that brought about the problem must be found and solved. By the way, its not those that were kicking tables who are the problem. Its their masters who were not even in the auditorium on that day who are the culprits. I hope that they will be brought to book.

Mzee writes that: “First, I don’t think its Raila’s job to arrest people. The police was there it their work.”
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That is far from what I had in mind. The “men in black” are not the real problem from what I can see. They are just tools that were being used. Dealing with them is a problem for the police, but what happens to them is not the issue I can see here. Tools can always be replaced.
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The question is “whose tools were they?”. The owner of the tools are the people Raila should be dealing with. That is what I hand in mind. I note that you also agree somewhat on that point.
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It is possible to avoid the issue by saying that there should be an investigation to determine who sent those men, but I think that would just be avoiding the issue. I have talked to some fairly reliable people, and it seems that the tool owners are known. The rumor mills are also hard at work, and there is now even the strange notion that Raila sent them to avoid a takeover of ODM. I think I read that one in THE STAR.
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From what I can see, there are two factions in ODM and they are set to collide. The idea of duplicating positions to accommodate both teams did not work, which is why that fiasco happened. These teams are going to collide, whether this week or next year. This interim arrangement is, as I see it, not that good because it just postpones dealing with what must happen.
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There is also a huge problem that Adongo has pointed out. That is appointing the contestants to oversee the contest. Sense would have suggested appointing people somewhere in the middle.
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BUT LET ME RETURN TO THE BIGGER PICTURE, which is actually my interest. As Adongo says, some of us don’t know the men in black or who sent them. It is however quite clear that this was an internal ODM operation. Therefore there are two possibilities.

One possibility is that the ODM leadership (including Raila) does not know who mounted an operation that has resulted in such bad optics for the party. If that is the case, then there must be very serious questions about the leadership (including Raila).

The other possibility is that the ODM leadership (including Raila) know who sponsored the operation, but they will not say and they will not act.

THE MAIN PERSON I AM CONCERNED WITH in the ODM leadership is Raila. If Raila is going to make a credible presidential challenge in 2017, then he needs to get the party in shape now instead of risking destructive internal conflicts much later on. That is why I say better have inevitable collisions now instead of dancing around them. The other possibility is that one side be forced to back down.

I could be wrong but it appears to me that this is being handled as just internal strife. It is that, but it could be a mistake to see it as just that. Looking at the lead up to these elections, the fiasco, and the reaction, the fact is that many people, and not just on the other side, are beginning to have doubts about Raila’s leadership. The party faithful and leaders need to deal with that instead of sticking to the usual line that Raila’s leadership can never be in any doubt.

I have to confess that I am not an ODM member, so my views can be taken in the light of those of an “outsider”. But I think the current handling is mistaken just as was the pre-election handling, which is when the real issues should have been dealt with. As I see it, the ODM party faithful have to look at certain hard and unpleasant realities and find constructive solutions, if it is to remain a serious national party. Internal games may fool or be acceptable to the party faithful, but there are others too. 2017 is most likely Raila’s last real short. It would be a pity if he got dragged down by his own party.

I think this will be my last word on this topic. I wish ODM the best and hope that these issues will be ironed out quickly.

Akinyi, the idea to increase the posts was so that the party could meet the constitutional threshold for two thirds gender parity. Not the government, not parliament, no political party has been able to meet this constitutional requirement. it was not just a matter of pacifying factions.

as at the time some delegates were walking out (Mombasa) that is when one of the factions were hoping to create fracas and throw the entire function into disarray. It did not work because Nairobi delegates stood firm. The plan to disrupt that function was made in advance, and the men in black was actually a mix of genuine party security and imported goons. Am surprised no media house can point out to the fact party security wore ID badges on their lapels, while those who vandalized the election material did not have such badges. The only distinguishing feature is that they wore black suits like party security.

there is no way this party will be taken over by Jubilee. that will be vigourously resisted.

“Akinyi, the idea to increase the posts was so that the party could meet the constitutional threshold for two thirds gender parity.”

This is a very odd explanation and it is odd that it is coming out so late. If positions were being made vacant so people could be elected to fill them, why was it necessary to create additional vacant positions. If, say, gender balance cannot be achieved with say 6 positions, then what guarantee is there that doubling the number will help. Were the women to be given those positions as opposed to elected? If so, why create new positions? Why not just give them some of the existing positions?

The statement above could be interpreted as saying that some positions are “guaranteed” for men and the only way to get women in is to create new positions.

I think the ODM party faithful should be careful about “explanations” that only increase the negative reflection. Again, I repeat my observation that it will be a pity if Raila’s last real chance is blown by his own party.

Instead of keeping the government in check, capitalizing on all the theft and errors of jubilee, it’s a pity that ODM the largest and only truly national party has been reduced to this. no wonder the jubilee government can afford a luxurious 5-day snoozing session.

Anyway, I think ODM has handled its mess the best way it could under the circumstances. failure to reign in one of the factions with their ‘maintaining-the-kasarani – mood rallies would have only worsened the tension, fragmentation and factionalism within the party. however, kicking the can down the road is the easy part. let’s see how the warring factions navigate the hard part – that of being a player cum referee as they try to find a lasting solution.

phil, i think you guys also need to tone down the kind of talk that only serves to alienate some members. such rumors have been flying thick and fast leaving many party supporters confused particularly when they see ‘staunch’ party members on both sides of ‘the divide.’ who are these jubilee moles? (i like joho and ababu better not mention any of them :)) if at all true, how does that help jubilee or how will the said moles execute their plan given that ODM has a decision making organ that ratifies all decisions? okay the delegates may be ‘bought’ but what about the voters who have the final say?

Akinyi,
While I agree with you to some extent, I will fall back on my experience. That is what has informed my write up.
There was a time some people were saying that William Ruto was about to bolt out of ODM and that he was inciting the Kalenjins in that direction. I was one of those who defended WSR on countless occasion in our sister site Jukwaa. I must have defended him for a couple of years until it clearly emerged that he was a bitter man having been “denied” the position of DPM.

The same thing happened with Musalia Mudavadi. Initially I was of the opinion that there were those in the party who just hated him. Inspite of being a weak person politically, I was of the impression that Uhuruto/Kibaki axis could not “buy” him. Besides, I argued that if he left ODM all of the western province block would go with him. I was very wrong. He completely betrayed the party and the votes that I thought he would take with him never materialized.
Many are saying that there is a mole/s in the party. It would be easy to dismiss this for fear of rocking the boat from inside but in my opinion the party would rather deal with the moles now, four years before the elections than on the eve of elections. The so called mole/s can be from anywhere.http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000106137&story_title=focus-turns-to-raila-over-odm-conflicts

Infact they need not show their faces or raise voices to be moles. There is a fierce struggle going on between Nyanza legislators to inherit Railas mantle. But all of them think that they are fit to wear Railas shoes. All of them want to control the party. They are even threatening to politically divide Luo Nyanza into South vs Central. Truth be told even at the height of Mboya and Jaramogi rivalry there was no such divide. Mboya was basically a Nairobi politician while Jaramogi had his base in Nyanza. At the same time they were both national and international figures. Do any of the politicos jostling to control ODM fit the profile of Mboya or Jaramogi national and international profiles? The answer is plain no. My point is that the moles are not necessarily from outside Nyanza.

For the above reasons, I strongly feel that it’s good to point fingers now than later. Infact moles will soon walk away to their masters. Watch this space.

Thanks for the info about this ODM screw up. At some point these people are going to have to realize that Kenyans may just get fed up with them. When you piss in your own house all the time, don’t be surprised when nobody wants to come there. In fact you should be surprised if anybody comes there.

Joho could barely qualify to be a governor with his fake degree from Uganda. Now he sees himself as a possible presidential candidate. For which country? I know we have murderers running the country but that will not last forever.

I think the real problem in ODM is that some people just want to buy the party. If it is on sale then let them announce that. They could get better buyers. Waititu could put some cash on this thing. Big money. That is what I am talking about. People are getting sick and tired of the same old crap.

One thing I can say about ODM is that its members really love their party. That is a good thing for them. They need to clean the mess in the party very fast. We will see.

I know a few people up there in ODM, I will talk with them like I have done in the past, honestly and frankly. If I find something I will let you folks know. Keep the info coming.

Surely, can’t ODM spare us such unnecessary heartaches especially after our victory has been stolen twice consecutively from us due partly and hugely to ODM’s and CORD’s ineptitude in matters properly organised elections whether internal or national??

When I first saw Hon Isaack Mwaura and his goons walk into the auditorium shouting that there would be no elections without a delegates list I thought that it was a joke. At the same time I thought that this was just a small matter that would soon be solved. I had expected those shouting to be thrown out.

The other surprise was seeing how the goons, and they were not that many walked in and started kicking tables and destroying ballot boxes. I thought the ODM security would stop them. But again at this point it was hard to tell who was security and who was a goon.

While it’s hard to come up with answers at this early hour, I think that security should have been tighter around the ballot boxes. My advice is that ODM bring in the GSU into the hall and place them round the auditoriums floor at all times.

My other suggestion but which I think is the most important is that the party starts voting as early as 10:00. In this way if there is a problem, it can be solved and voting can continue. In todays case there was no time for re-organization for it was already too late in the day.

I suggest that elections be done again as soon as possible, probably in a matter of weeks than months. This will help the party keep the gathered momentum.

ODM can also try moving this convention to another venue and city. Why not take it to Mombasa or Kisumu for that matter. There are enough hotels in this towns to accommodate less that 3000 delegates.

ODM must act by investigating and exposing those who caused chaos. I suggest that such persons should be banned from holding any post in the party.

Just to add to what I have said, Im wondering if Hon Mwaura is literate. His name was the first in the real ballot paper. But he brought the voting process to s standstill because Ababu and Joho did not include him in their campaign list. And the reason he was not in that list is because he refused to contribute money for printing material.He had expected Ababu and Joho to do that on his behalf?

Men in black==aladwa==mwaura==team zani(kajwang et al)==national elections board==Raila.
The only way ODM can try to fight jubilee politics wise is if team Ababu and Joho wins.They are eloquent and truth be told, the youth identify with them more that they do with the likes of Kajwang
How is it that every ODM elections are always bungled and Raila’s confidants are always the beneficiaries?
Team Zani is just there to eat nothing more.
Why would ODM go for elections and the winner still shares their post wwith some people who were defeated in a democratic process?

As the clock ticks towards the National Delegates Convention (NDC) of the Orange Democratic Movement ( ODM ) scheduled for next February, focus is now shifting on who will be what in the party’s National office.

Already, the National Governing Council (NGC) of the party, the second top decision making organ of the ODM has set February 2014 as the month the NDC should be held, however, the date is yet to be set.

Political temperatures have risen in the party as members who include MPs and Senators have began jostling for positions in the National office, perhaps to grab a grip of party politics for their survival in the murky waters of politics.

The power struggle pitying the seasoned politicians in the party and new crop of politicians is visible. Campaigns have began in earnest as alignments and re-alignments become a reality.

Although there are those who have openly and vigorously chosen to express their interests in various seats in the national office, there are some who have elected to do it secretly, by reaching out to delegates to persuade them to elect them.
Rumour has it that Gov. Hassan Joho, MPs George Oner, Andrew Toboso, Abdikadir Aden and many others are some of the politicians currently engaged with strategies to contact and convince the delegates on their candidatures. Attempts to contact the poilticians were fruitless except for George Oner, a first timer MP for Rangwe, rumoured to be angling for the position of National Deputy Organizing Secretary.

Asked about his ambitions, Mr. Oner was cagey in his response saying he is currently interested in farmiliarizing himself with Party Structures both at National and Grassroots levels. He says he wants to understand the branch network, the sub-branches, the delegates at those levels to help him get insight into how the party works.

Pressed further on the position of Deputy Organizing Secretary, he vaguely answered that he is a life member of the party and can vie for any position but that he is not keen to appear to be engaging in premature campaigns which can undermine party unity. Apparently the rumour might be true afterall, such are the ways of politicians.

It will be interesting to know what he would like to do for the party should he eventually gun for this position.